Who Won the 2019 NBA Championship?

The Toronto Raptors won the 2019 NBA Championship, defeating the Golden State Warriors in six games.

The Golden State Warriors

The Team’s Regular Season

The Warriors began the season by winning their first 24 games, an NBA record for best start to a season. The team’s 28–1 start was the best in NBA history, breaking the previous record of 27–1 set by the 1993–94 Houston Rockets. They also became the fastest team to reach 30 wins in an NBA season (34 games), and matched the 2007–08 Rockets for most wins in a season before February (34). With a win over the San Antonio Spurs on January 25, 2016, the Warriors improved to 36–4, which matched the 1966–67 Philadelphia 76ers for the fewest losses through 40 games in an NBA season. The Warriors then won 19 consecutive games from February 4 to March 16, which tied them with 2012–13 Miami Heat and 2014–15 Houston Rockets for second-longest single-season win streak in NBA history behind only the 1971–72 Los Angeles Lakers (19 games). They extended this streak by winning their first seven games of March, becoming only the sixth team ever to win at least 19 straight games in two separate seasons. On March 23, they recorded their 50th win of the season against Charlotte Hornets, clinching their sixth consecutive playoff berth. In doing so, they joined four other teams in NBA history (Boston Celtics [10 times], Los Angeles Lakers [nine], San Antonio Spurs [six], and Philadelphia 76ers [six]) as well as two WNBA teams (Houston Comets [seven times] and Minnesota Lynx [six]) as having made at least six straight trips to the playoffs. On April 4, against Memphis Grizzlies, they earned their 53rd win of the season; this was more than any other team had earned over a full 82-game schedule since 1995–96 Chicago Bulls won 72 times. Later that day, it was revealed that Andrew Bogut would miss four to six weeks with a knee injury he suffered against Grizzlies.

The Team’s Postseason

The Golden State Warriors made it to the NBA Finals for the fifth consecutive year, but they were unable to win the championship for the third year in a row. They lost to the Toronto Raptors in six games.

The Toronto Raptors

The Team’s Regular Season

The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league’s Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games at the Scotiabank Arena, which they share with the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. The Raptors are the only Canadian-based NBA team.

The team was established in 1995 as part of the NBA’s expansion into Canada, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies. Since the Grizzlies relocated to Memphis, Tennessee in 2001, the Raptors have been the only Canadian-based team in the NBA. They originally played their home games at SkyDome (now Rogers Centre), before moving eastward along Bremner Boulevard to Scotiabank Arena in 1999.

The Raptors enjoyed a breakout season in 2017–18, winning a franchise record 59 games and clinching the East’s top seed for the first time in team history; they eventually reached the conference finals that year where they lost to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in four games. The following season, they became NBA champions after defeating Golden State Warriors 4–2 in their first ever Finals appearance; this marked Canada’s first major professional sports title since 1993 when Montreal Canadiens won Stanley Cup and also becoming only one of two Canadian teams to win an NBA championship as of 2019 (the other being Vancouver Grizzlies).

The Team’s Postseason

The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league’s Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games at the Scotiabank Arena, which they share with the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs. The team was founded in 1995 as part of the NBA’s expansion into Canada, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies. Since their debut, the Raptors have finished as runners-up once (in 2001), after reaching the Eastern Conference Finals six times (in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2016, 2017, and 2018). As of 2019, they have won five division titles.

The Finals

The Toronto Raptors have won their first ever NBA championship, beating the defending champion Golden State Warriors in six games. In a series that saw the Raptors lose star player Kawhi Leonard to injury, they rallied behind Leonard’s replacement, Pascal Siakam, and won the final three games to seal the series victory.

Game One

The Warriors won Game One, 124-114. Stephen Curry led the way for Golden State, scoring 36 points on 11-of-22 shooting, including 6-of-14 from three-point range. Curry also had seven assists and six rebounds in the victory. Kevin Durant added 26 points, five rebounds and six assists, while Klay Thompson scored 24 points. Draymond Green had a triple-double, finishing with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

Game Two

Coming off a Game One victory in which they never trailed, the Golden State Warriors looked to take a commanding 2-0 lead in The Finals against the Toronto Raptors. As has been the case for much of these playoffs, the Warriors were without Kevin Durant, as he continues to recover from a calf injury. Toronto, meanwhile, was looking to even the series after an inconsistent performance in the series opener.

The Raptors got off to a hot start in Game Two, jumping out to an early lead and maintaining it throughout the first half. Kawhi Leonard was once again leading the charge for Toronto, scoring 30 points in the first two quarters. The Warriors were able to keep it close thanks to Stephen Curry, who had 21 points in the half. It was clear that Durant’s absence was having an effect on Golden State, as they were struggling to score without their second-best player.

In the second half, Leonard continued to dominate, finishing with 34 points on the night. The Raptors as a team played well defensively, limiting Curry and Klay Thompson to a combined 28 points. With the win, Toronto evened up the series at one game apiece heading back home for Games Three and Four.

Game Three

The Warriors entered Game 3 looking to avoid a 3-0 deficit in the series. They came out firing on all cylinders, building a 22-point lead in the first quarter. The Raptors slowly chipped away at the lead, and by halftime, it was single digits. In the second half, the Raptors took control of the game and never looked back, winning by a final score of 123-109. With the win, the Raptors took a commanding 3-0 lead in the series.

Game Four

The Toronto Raptors closed out the 2019 NBA Finals with a Game Four victory over the Golden State Warriors, winning the series 4-2. With the win, the Raptors become the first Canadian team to win an NBA championship.

Raptors guard Kawhi Leonard was named Finals MVP after averaging 28.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per game in the series. Leonard becomes just the third player in NBA history to win Finals MVP with two different teams, joining LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Game Five

The Warriors win a close one in Toronto, 106-105, to take a 3-2 series lead. With the game tied at 103 and Golden State in possession, Durant hits a long three-pointer over Danny Green with 45.9 seconds remaining. Leonard’s last-second jumper bounces off the rim as time expires. Durant finishes with 31 points, while Leonard has a game-high 34.